Are You Blind To Google’s Rankbrain?

Updated: February 13, 2023

Is you company active with the standard SEO practices? yes, but what if Google Rankbrain starts calling the shots? lets get on with these SEO strategies that may help you survive these rough waters.

A lot has been heard and shunned about why Google ranks one website over another. For the least-informed people, SEO primarily revolves around content and backlines only. But hey, wait a relatively new Google’s Rankbrain has made its presence felt, like never before.

While you are making truckload of investment in sharpening SEO, do not neglect Rankbrain which could be a decisive factor in the times to come! How? Let's get on ...

We all know most of the search queries are sorted by algorithm codes written by humans. Yet, there is a decent fraction of search queries which remains a conundrum for even coders. So how to go about it? Here, comes the Rankbrain - machine learning algorithm - which filters out the intent of the search query.

It basically does three things:

Evaluate search queries

Determine user satisfaction with the search results

Process the feedback to improve the future results

The presence of Rankbrain is bound to be a crucial factor driving your SEO, if not now, but in very near future. As of now, most companies are active with the standard SEO practices, but what if Rankbrain starts calling the shots? How is your SEO going to get affected?

Without much wait, lets get on with the four SEO strategies that may help you survive these rough waters:

1. High CTR

Google keeps a close tab on its Quality Score algorithm to ensure that users get relevant ads for every search query. If you have to manage your cost-per click and ad rank, you have to keep the click-through rate high with relevance given to each ad group.

All you have to do is beat the expected CTR for each given ad spot. So the better your Google ad does as compared to the expected CTR, more you are likely to grab the best quality score.

Rankbrain is tuned to observe human behavior, especially what makes them click one link over another. So, attaining higher click-through rates makes way for better SEO as much as it is crucial for PPC success.

2. Optimize SEO Headings & Meta Descriptions

Most SEOs optimize the title tags to get organic traffic to the website. In the same vein, keyword optimized titles work wonders for “Dynamic Keyword Insertion” for PPC ads as well. Have a look at the client data graph below:

Herein, the ads which are using DKI may fail to rank the ads among the top 5% having a highest CTR. These ads perform on an average level like many other ads. So how to get high CTR? Or for that matter conquer RankBrain?

Well, there is plenty of research, backing that ads in the organic list ought to have high CTR, and for that to happen, you need to have engaging PPC ads with possibly a few emotional trigger points. Twisting the words to reflect human emotions could attract lot more natural clicks than any other way.

So, keep an interesting blend of SEO keywords and emotional triggers to create a cut-throat SEO compass that results in unbelievable CTR leaving behind competition far in the race.

3. Is it Complete?

As much as organic traffic is important, you must compel the maximum users to complete the form or action as well. This is where conversion rate comes into picture. Look at the graph below:

adwords industry benchmarks average conversion rate

In the parlance of organic search, a conversion may or may not be equivalent to completion of a form. Google can merely count it as engagement rate.

Remember, Google has a plethora of resources to collect and analyze the data such as Chrome, Gmail, Android, Maps, so on so forth. So it can easily configure if any user, after signing up in the device, has successfully completed the task or not.

Likewise, it gets tons of data from Adwords to conclude the conversion rate which actually brings financial transaction. Focus on the engagement quotient of your site as it a good indicator that users are spending more time and is hooked enough to convert or complete.

RankBrain keeps a close notice of this user behavior as it ranks you high if the completion rate is high since it indicates purposeful content. Also, it may resort to penalizing you if you raise the bar with substandard completion rates.

We all know that targeting users who have already visited your website or mobile app with RLSA (remarketing lists for search ads) tends to fuel more CTR unlike your generic strategies using same keywords.

All you can do is make a cohesive strategy using social media ads such as Twitter and facebook ads

As per a research, mobile referral search traffic has notched up to whopping 12.8 percent in many cases through facebook ads. Also, facebook ads are relatively cheaper with bulk volume data available in your hands. So make the most of it.

Likewise, soar up your branding value with Display Ad remarketing on the Google Display Network. There is significant data reflecting that executing this strategy positively influences your engagement metrics and bounce rate.

It's simple, people who are familiar with your brand are more likely to click and visit your site and make a conversion, not just once but repeatedly!

So, anticipate and act on it!

To wrap up:

Rankbrain has been ruffling the feathers of many companies for obvious reasons. You can’t outdo Google that easily but at least be prepared for surprises like these.

With Google RankBrain in the picture, the focus is on clearly defining search intently for giving meaningful results for every search query. After all, you can’t continue to follow the old rules and expect better results.

With SEO future uncertain, you must stay alert to prepare a combat strategy to stay in the competition and continue to rank better than your competitors. In fact, it calls for consulting ingenious SEO professionals to get hold of strategies that put your website in a better position.